| June 07 |
Dave Mirra BMX
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| June 07 | PuzzleBall |
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June 07 |
Shrek the Third |
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Wii UK Roundtable - Wii Remote Attachments | |
James Hobbs, Jonathan Westlake & Jonathan Hobbs |
With some developers seemingly running out of buttons for their more conventional titles, what Wii remote attachments would you like to see in the future?
James
I think there's incredibly potential and scope for innovation with the 'hot-shoe' on the bottom of the Wii remote, and I'm fairly certain
that Nintendo have a few aces up their sleeves. No doubt they'll come up with something amazing that will surprise everyone, but I do think that
third party accessories manufacturers should start racking their brains now so they can bring new products to the market quickly.
A shield attachment could provide some interesting entertainment, perhaps if coupled with an 'extender' to make the Wii remote into more of a sword
- obviously you'd need quite a bit of room, and the shield's motion sensor may be costly, but I still think it would be bloody good fun. A decent
steering wheel with a Wii remote dock would be lovely too - having said that, perhaps a decent, realistic driving game would be necessary first.
Manufacturers need to start pumping out the products and the ideas - it's definitely in their interests to do so. More buttons isn't necessarily the
way forward - more development motion control systems is.
Jonathan W
Rant time again. What is it with developing games that require masses of buttons? Does anyone really get any sense of achievment of fun from having fifteen buttons at their
fingertips? Bring back old school gameplay values where the timing of pressing the button was far more important than actually remembering which button or combination
of buttons you have to press. Maybe I'm just malcoordinated and over nostalgic.
Anyway, back on topic. Attachments for any games system should open up a new
style of play that wasn't previously possible using the traditional supplied controller. In the Wii's case, this is slightly trickier as the Wiimote is more versatile
than most (even if developers are slow to get to grips with the possibilities). I've scratched my head and these are best I could come up with:
Motion sensors for the feet. I'm thinking of a Velcro pad style affair that could have a number of uses – gas/brake pedals for racing games; rudder controls
for flight games; kicking sports (eg: penalty shootouts/conversions) and of course ultimate immersion in a fighting game. Guaranteed to make you fall over, look like a tit, and to get Jack Thompson riled.
Keyboard/Mouse. Mainly for internet browsing and messaging, but could also double up for FPS games for ultimate control.
Microphone. No need for a cable – just a simple a mic that can plug into the Wiimote so you hold it upside down. Then my
girlfriend can be happy with Singstar and everyone else could benefit from VOIP or Teamspeak without wearing a silly headset.
Dancemat/Bongos/Maraccas/Guitar. OK, I'm running out of ideas and am blatantly nicking accessories that are already on the market for other consoles,
but these will only continue to broaden the user-base for the console.
Jonathan H
I think that with the technology that is available now, there is almost no limit to what we could see attached to the Wii remote
in the future. I think wireless is a key characteristic that must be associated with any new attachment,
as it is not only more practical, but is more appealing to the market in general, as it disposes of extremely
annoying and fickle wires.
I personally would like to see more instrumental games to be produced (i.e. games that involve music, either making it or playing it)
and some advanced attachments for the Wii remote to make the experience even more real. A Wii drum kit would be very amusing (foot
pedals and perhaps two Wii remotes for sticks) but would have to incorporate wireless technology.
More classical instruments would be also very interesting e.g. a clarinet, with an attachment to the bottom of the
Wii-mote with the extra keys needed for the clarinet. This would be more practical as it does not require wireless,
nor any annoying wires.
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